International Women’s Day, which is celebrated every year on March 8, The day is commemorated to celebrate achievements in diverse fields, such as raising awareness regarding gender inequality and discrimination, advocating for women’s rights, and promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment globally.
International Women’s Day is celebrated across the globe. Also, India is among the many countries that take this day very seriously. In the past few decades, India has emerged as the country to produce more and more billionaires and female entrepreneurs.
So, to celebrate all the women in business who work hard and night and are proving their metal, Here’s the list of the 10 richest women in India.
1. Savitri Jindal
Savitri Jindal is an Indian businesswoman and a prominent figure in the steel industry. She was born on March 20, 1950, and was the chairperson of Jindal Steel and Power Limited (JSPL), which is one of the leading steel producers in India.
Savitri Jindal was also involved in politics. She served as a member of the Haryana Vidhan Sabha (State Legislative Assembly) from 2005 to 2009. She represented the Hisar constituency in the state of Haryana.
She became the chairperson of JSPL after the death of her husband, Om Prakash Jindal, in 2005. Savitri Jindal is known for her philanthropic activities and was involved in various social initiatives through the O.P. Jindal Group. According to Forbes Savitri Jindal is India’s richest woman with a net worth of $29.1 Billion.
2. Rohiqa Cyrus Mistry
Rohiqa Cyrus Mistry is the wife of the late Cyrus Mistry, former chairman of the Tata Group. She is also the daughter-in-law of the late construction magnate Pallonji Mistry and the daughter of celebrated lawyer Iqbal Chagla.
Inheriting her late husband’s shares, Rohiqa Mistry emerged as one of India’s wealthiest women. Her notable stake includes an 18.4 percent ownership in Tata Sons. With two children, Mistry recently joined the 2024 roster of India’s newly minted-female billionaires. According to Forbes Rohiqa is presently the second most richest woman in India with a net worth of $8.7 Billion.
3. Rekha Jhunjhunwala
In 2022, after the death of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, his wife, Rekha Jhunjhunwala, assumed his position. Inheriting his stock portfolio, she ascended to become one of India’s wealthiest women. Her investment portfolio encompasses 29 companies, including Titan, Tata Motors, and Crisil. Today, she is the third-wealthiest woman in India, with a net worth of $8 billion.
4. Vinod Gupta
Vinod Gupta and her son Anil Rai Gupta manage Havells India, a significant player in India’s electrical equipment industry. The company was established by Vinod’s late husband, Qimat Rai Gupta. Operating across over 50 countries, Havells runs 14 product manufacturing facilities. With the electrical Equipment company, Vinod Gupta became the fourth wealthiest woman in India with a net worth of $4.2 billion.
5. Smita Crishna
Smita Crishna, a prominent member of the esteemed Godrej family, possesses a notable 20 percent stake in the family’s assets. According to Forbes, the Godrej family oversees the $5.2 billion-in-revenue Godrej Group, a 126-year-old consumer goods titan. But with her presence of mind and business ethos, Smita is the fifth wealthiest woman in India, with a net worth of $3.3 billion.
6- Leena Gandhi Tewari
Leena Gandhi Tewari is the chairperson of USV Private Limited, a multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company based in Mumbai. USV was founded by her grandfather, Vithal Balkrishna Gandhi, in 1961.
Leena earned her B.Com. from the University of Mumbai and her Master of Business Administration from Boston University. She is married to Prashant, who is the managing director of the company. She is also involved in humanitarian work and supports Dr. Sushila Gandhi’s Center for Underprivileged Women. Presently, Leena Gandhi is the sixth wealthiest woman in India, with a net worth of $3.3 billion.
7. Falguni Nayar
Falguni Nayar is the Chief Executive Officer of the beauty and lifestyle brand Nykaa. She was born into a Gujratai family in Mumbai, and she did her graduation from Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics, and after that, she did her masters from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.
In 1993, Nayar joined Kotak Mahindra Group, and she worked there for 19 years. In 2012, she left Kotak Mahindra Group and formed Nykaa at the age of 50 with $2 million in valuation, and as of 2021, Nykaa is listed with $13 billion in valuation. Presently, Falguni Nayar is standing strong with a net worth of $3 billion.
8. Anu Aga
Anu Aga is a businesswoman and a social worker. She graduated with a B.A. in Economics from St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai, and with a post-graduation in medical and psychiatric social work from the prestigious Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai. Presently, she is the eighth wealthiest woman in India, and she has a net worth of $2.8 billion.
9. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw
Kiran Mazumdar Shaw is the executive chairperson and founder of Biocon Limited and Biocon Biologics Limited. She pursued her education at Bangalore University and then at the University of Ballarat, Melbourne.
After completing her education, she did consulting work for a few years before she met Leslie Auchincloss, then owner of an Irish firm, Biocon Biochemicals. Impressed by Mazumdar, Auchincloss took her on as a partner in a new venture, Biocon India, in 1978, and it produced enzymes for alcoholic beverages, paper, and other products.
In 2005, Mazumdar-Shaw was honored with the Padma Bhushan Award, one of India’s highest civilian honors, for her excellent work in industrial biotechnology. Kiran Mazumdar is the ninth richest woman in India, with a net worth of $2.5 billion.
10. Radha Vembu
Radha Vembu is the owner and majority stakeholder of Zoho Corporation, an Indian software development company. Vembu has a degree in industrial management from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras.
Zoho Corporation was founded by her and her brother Sridhar Vembu, who started the business in 1996 as AdventNet. She owns a majority stake in the company, is a product manager for the email service Zoho Mail, and is also the director of the Corpus Foundation. Radha Vembu is known for her simplicity and hard work, and today she ranks tenth among the richest women in India with a net worth of $2.1 billion.